Canta padded lightly from the den, ebony paws hitting the stone. The sun was just barely raising above the horizon, the lights from the streams starting to fade as the light of the sun began to get brighter. She blinked against the light, dipping her head some so that she wasn?t looking at it straight on. The majority of her family was still sleeping, but Canta was up now and despite herself wanted to watch the sunrise. The sky was already starting to change colors and the girl lowered herself upon her haunches, with a sigh her forest green gaze lifted skyward.

Lakota stirred slowly, unwilling to be torn from the inviting realms of her dreams. What truly woke the ebony and ivory babe was the absence of warmth pressed against her side. A chill breeze penetrated the girl's patchy winter coat, her pelt not grown to full winter thickness just yet. Kota groggily lifted her cranium from where it had been settled comfortably atop her mismatched paws, crimson and gold eyes blinking the sleep from bleary irises. The girl looked around, curious as to why she was suddenly cold, and realized that her sister Canta was no longer curled up to her side. Lakota groaned and released her neck muscles, her head falling back to it's original place. However, the babe had awoken, and there was no falling back asleep. Resigning herself to be awake long before the rest of her family, the girl slowly rose to her paws, stretching ever muscle and relishing the crack and pop of her joints realigning. Kota took a deep lungful of crisp winter air, catching the scent of her sister in the process. The girl, large for her age, swung her head towards the opening of the den, where she spied Canta sitting, watching the sunrise. Lakota began moving towards her, picking her way as quietly and carefully through the den as she could, avoiding stepping on tails and paws at all costs. Lakota emerged from the den and shook out her fur, fluffing it up to escape the cold. "Good morning, sister." Lakota said quietly as she settled down next to Canta. "What are you doing up so early? Are you okay?" Lakota was truly concerned for the well-bring of her sister; there were moments when Kota felt she hated her entire family, but this was not one of those times. There was a chance that Canta was distressed, and the ivory babe was not going to let that pass by without careful scrutiny. Speech,

Had Canta known her leaving the den would wake her sister she would not have gotten up, but then it was over and done with now. The girl was aware of her sister?s approach though she barely reacted at first, audits perking and her head turning just the slightest bit towards Lakota. She allowed a small smile as the bigger girl sat beside her, uttering a greeting of her own. ?Morning ?Kota.? She kept her gaze trained on the sky as her sister posed her a new question. She considered it for a moment before actually looking at her sister fully.
Would she understand, she wondered. ?I?m fine,? She began in her soft voice, blinking slowly, ?Just wanted to watch the sunrise.? Canta had never been quite as playful as her siblings, this sort of thing was much more her speed. Her sister however?? Well, in truth all of her siblings were a bit of an enigma to the quite girl, they seemed to function differently than she did and it baffled her.

Lakota settled herself more comfortably next to her sister, crimson and gold irises starting out into the sky. The girl watched with rapture as the sun slowly crept it's way over the horizon, painting the gray dawn with shades of pink, red, and orange. Making a quiet observation to her sister, Lakota said: "'Red sky in morning, travelers take warning..'" Lakota quickly glanced to her right, checking Canta for any form of reaction. "Looks like it's going to storm later." Kota continued, trying pathetically to hold a conversation. Lakota and Canta were similar in the ways of their solidarity, but Kota was feeling particularly lonely that morning. The ivory femme wanted, no, needed to feel some connection with her family. Speech,